Nicki Walters Tackles Mental Health and Identity Through Alt-Folk Sound

Artist Nicki Walters is active on TikTok, posting videos finger picking on an acoustic guitar while singing soft alto melodies. The singer-songwriter often creates a magnetic yet melancholic sonic atmosphere. 

Walters been honing their craft for quite some time, with a musical journey that actually began when their parents handed them a plastic Wiggles guitar.

“ I just had a lot of toy instruments that I’d mess around with and then got a real guitar when I was seven, got into lessons and then I think I started performing,” Walters said.

Walters, who uses she/they pronouns, doesn’t remember exactly when they started performing, but it was sometime in their early teens. They performed covers at farmer’s markets and other small gigs. They were obsessed with Ed Sheeran and played many of his songs along with ‘70s and ‘80s classics like “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac. 

Now, Walters is an alt-folk songwriter, musician and producer based in Denver. They primarily write about mental health and the queer experience, breaking the mold of traditional folk with electronic influences. 

Walters started writing music at around 15 years old and made up heartbreak scenarios, never having experienced it themselves. 

“I just wanted to write what I was listening to,” said Walters. 

Their songwriting and sound evolved as they experienced romance, loss and all of the coming-of-age emotions from the teenage years into early adulthood.

“I think I’ve just gone through a lot of life compared to then, and I have a lot more to say and to think about and to write about,” they said. “I’ve become comfortable and confident with sharing things that I didn’t really think that I would share or wanted to share within mental health.”

In 2019, Walters moved from Illinois to pursue music at the University of Colorado Denver. That’s where they met collaborator and drummer Nick Schell. Walters said Schell influenced them to shift in an alternative direction and make more experimental music. 

“I love writing acoustic songs with fun guitar parts, but at the same time, I love slapping on some distortion and some fuzz and going ham on some harder stuff,” they said. 

Walters released debut album “mouthful of roses” on Sept. 19. They listened to artists like Radiohead, Bon Iver, Imogen Heap, and Deftones for inspiration. 

“I did a lot of vocal processing and stuff, which kind of ties to Imogen and Bon Iver, but then I felt like this was the most alternative project that I put out, which was cool,” Walters said.

Walters produced the entire album in their room, recording guitar, bass and vocals. Schell played the drum parts, and Walters only outsourced mixing and mastering. 

“It’s exhausting, but it’s very satisfying and fulfilling,” they said. 

While the process was overwhelming, Walters said it was beneficial to record the album in their room because they could easily go back and make adjustments. 

“I would be going about my day, and thinking about the smallest details. I’m like, ‘Oh, what if I put this little guitar part that’s super reverby like right here,’ and stuff like that and kind of puzzle piecing it together,” they said. 

Their most vulnerable track on the record is “again/carpet swimming.” It’s unsettling and begins with Walters counting off numbers that layer over each other in an overwhelming mess. 

“I knew this would happen/ I can’t get over anything,” Walters sings amid the swirling chaos. Time picks up, then slows as their voice echoes in electronic distortion. 

“That song is this slew of dissociating, and it feels like a very random song to me,” said Walters. “It’s just this slew of emotion that I just had one day … It’s a lot. Even now, I don’t know if I fully understand it, but it felt good to get out.”

“mouthful of roses” traverses mental health, social anxiety and self-doubt. Walters ponders how they are perceived and what other people think. Writing all of those emotions down is a form of therapy. 

“I would probably lose my mind if I didn’t have this kind of outlet,” they said. 

Walters played The Pearl on Sept. 20 in honor of their album’s release. They have been a part of the Denver indie music scene for a few years and love its tight knit feel. 

“ Everyone’s super nice and really supportive of each other,” they said. “And everyone goes to everyone’s shows, which is really cool.”

Walters had bad stage fright when they were young and still works through it to this day. But they’re always excited to play the next show. 

Stay up to date with Nicki Walters on Instagram for upcoming shows and more.